01/24/2013

The Dallas Stars already fear Jaromir Jagr

DALLAS, Texas - Dallas Stars forward Jaromir Jagr has not had to share a hotel room in more than 15 years, but he had to the other night with a total stranger.

The Stars team was impatiently waiting on the team plane to leave the Detroit Airport a few hours after winning 2-1 against the Red Wings on Jan. 22.

The plane had an engine problem, and the team was forced to stay the night in Detroit forcing team the team's director of player services, Jason Rademan, scrambling tto find hotels for the team at 1 a.m. The Detroit area is slammed because of the auto show, so he was only able to locate 21 rooms in one hotel. This meant players were going to have to double up, even veterans.

The NHL and the player's union have rules in place on veterans who qualify for a single room; Jagr has been in the league for so long he has had his own room forever.

The team didn't arrive to the hotel until 2:30 a.m., at which point Rademan just started handing guys room keys. That was fine except no one wanted to room with veteran Jagr. They were all too intimidated because he's Jaromir Jagr.

It was mostly the young guys who shyed away from rooming with one of the best players in NHL history. That left the team's director/producing of TV broadcasting, Mark Vittorio.

"He was actually a really good sport about it," Vittorio said. "We talked a little tennis and it was fine. The only problem might have been that I snore."